It was 2005 when the first Sniper Elite game arrived in stores; The age of World War II shooters. Medal of Honor was storming the beaches of Normandy, while a competitor was storming the world, Call of Duty. On the PC front, massive battles were waged on Battlefield 1942 and Lucasfilm took flight in Secret Weapons Over Normandy. Like the stealthy protagonist in the game, Sniper Elite snuck in and provided something different for players; it was a game focusing on stealth, tactics, and espionage over brute force and loud aggression. Players had to think before they moved and every shot fired was a risk worth taking, risking exposure to the enemy to annihilate their target.
It’s been 17 years since that day, and now the series arrives at its fifth numerical Sniper Elite installment. It’s a different time in games, with a new generation among many other things, but Sniper Elite hasn’t changed; It’s evolved. Sniper Elite 5 is one of the best action and shooter games right now. Even though it’s May, it is already a strong contender for GOTY.
After its release in 2005, Sniper Elite wouldn’t return until 2012 with the release of Sniper Elite V2. Many felt its inspiration was pulled right from the scenes of the Jude Laww movie, Enemy At The Gates. Sniper Elite V2 put players in a crumbling Berlin, using streets and smoldering rubble to take cover and hunt German scientists. In 2014, a follow-up arrived in the form of Sniper Elite III, which put players into the scorching deserts of North Africa, onto a wide and unforgiving battlefield in 1942. 2017’s Sniper Elite 4 saw the players fight on the Italian island of San Celini, putting players on a challenging battlefield of verticality in 1943. In each game, the core mechanics remained steady, receiving upgrades and realignments in each installment. With Sniper Elite 5, the core mechanics have been enhanced, but the overall gameplay has changed significantly.
Sniper Elite 5 puts players in the role of Karl Fairburne (Tom Clarke-Hill), at this point, a battle-hardened sniper and operative working with The Allies to end the Nazi War machine. Germany has suffered defeat in the past few years, largely thanks to his efforts. His action in North Africa ended the construction of Germany’s Super Tanks and the liberation of San Celini has ended pursuits of radio-controlled anti-ship missiles. Still, Hitler and his armed forces continue to pose a grave danger to the world and have begun the final preparations for a top-secret weapon, Project Kraken. The allies have created a daring amphibious operation, one of the largest in recorded history, Operation Overlord, and it’s believed Project Kraken could deal a major defeat to the allies. With The Allies targeting France, Karl is sent into meetup with the local French resistance, disrupt German military operations, and destroy Project Kraken. Upon arriving on the shores of France, everything goes wrong. The Resistance is scattered and reinforcements are obliterated. Karl Fairburne embarks on his most dangerous mission yet, right into the teeth of the lion.
The core gameplay mechanics are the same. The core main component of Sniper Elite 5 is to place a focus on stealth action and the use of the sniper rifle. However, in a new and refreshing take to the formula, Sniper Elite 5 has given encouragement to the player to use all tools necessary to get the job done, from different options to pursue an objective to utilizing every weapon and tool at their disposal. New to the formula are the gun workbenches, where players can modify their weapon with various attributes, ranging from the barrel to the scope of the grip. This customization aspect was introduced in Sniper Elite III but has been greatly enhanced in Sniper Elite 5 with more detail and options, including options for sidearms. Players can carry one primary, one secondary, and a sidearm. Players have options to various tools as well, though gone is rock. In previous games, throwing created a small tone, which would cause a distraction alerting an enemy unit. Now that has been replaced with glass bottles, and players can only carry so many. At the same time, this is compensated by the utilization of close-quarters combat. Players won’t be performing CQC martial arts as they did in Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, however, they will have the opportunity to pacify or eliminate enemy soldiers if they can get close enough.
In regards to combat, there is a myriad of options for players. Sniper Elite 5 has eight chapters. Each chapter is a small sandbox, with players able to explore and address various primary and secondary targets at their leisure. This is a huge step up from the more linear designs of the franchise’s predecessors, and essentially follows the footsteps of games like The Saboteur. It is a breathtaking and exciting decision point, made even more so by the bevy of tactical options. The first level alone gives players the chance to take on a radar installation. Players can either crumble the station by destroying two pillars or infiltrate the station to shut it down. Each route has its own method and risks, but that’s after you encounter the various patrols and sentries on your way to the objective. Each level provides its own challenges, from the countryside to fortresses. Players can completely ignore objectives or complete every single one. They can be non-lethal or down every last German they see. The entire experience rests with the player.
The gameplay is incredibly versatile, and at times, I was reminded of the dynamic combat of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of The Patriots in 2008. The PlayStation 3 hallmark was a stealth-action game at its center, and primarily focused on that mechanic, but it gave options for how to address enemies, and should a player be detected, they could easily stand their ground with exciting combat. The same can be said with Sniper Elite 5 in the sense that layers have options. At its center is the sniper rifle, and players can modify their rifle with different rounds and attachments to create the rifle that best suits them. Players use the environment to better mask their sounds, sabotaging generators and using artillery noise to mask their shots. Players can booby trap almost everything as well, from alarms to bodies, as enemies will undoubtedly be hunting for players. An interesting option presented in Sniper Elite 5 is the option for non-lethal takedowns. Players can knock unsuspecting enemies unconscious, and later, use tranquilizer rounds. Another interesting addition is the information displayed when tagging enemies, giving a small profile of an enemy combatant on the upper-right hand corner of the screen. Knocking enemies out with non-lethal force does yield an XP bonus at the end of each mission, making the extra effort worth it for those that wish to play more like a true stealth agent and be more invisible in combat. As for the profiling, it seems the developers want to give layers a little more thought to their actions. One enemy may be a team leader and fully believe in what they’re fighting for but another combatant may be fearful and unsure what it is they’re doing, to begin with, giving further context to the nature of the enemies on the battlefield.
When players are detected, there are a few options players employ. The shooting mechanics have been refined to allow players to use heavier weapons, such as the MG-42 or the STG-44, giving players an opportunity to quickly eliminate enemies. The same can be said with the sidearms, which can provide a quick stealth elimination in a pinch. Rounds can be exchanged as well. If players want to eliminate an enemy quietly, a subsonic round will do the trick, but if they want to eliminate an armored enemy, There are also the assortments of explosives to be used as well, from grenades to TNT. Sniper Elite 5 is by no means a third-person shooter, and one simply cannot play this game like Medal of Honor or Wolfenstein but there is at least the option to go loud and stand your ground, if necessary. The meant and potatoes of Sniper Elite 5 will always be the sniping, and once again, it’s immeasurably satisfying. The X-Ray camera has been refined, and the highly detailed X-Ray kills are more brutal and satisfying than ever before, once again displaying the sheer destruction of a well-placed shot. The same can be for the close-quarters eliminations as well. Players are encouraged to get creative with their shots, especially using explosives to eliminate the enemy.
Sniper Elite 5 poses a strong challenge, even on easy, but I simply cannot finish this review without praising the multitude of accessibility options, from color blindness to visual settings to the nature of enemies for difficulty. There are several base difficulty options, from easy, with many assists turned on, to authentic, which removes all assists and challenges players to measure all aspects of sniping, from wind to gravity, not to mention making the enemies far more dangerous. No matter what difficulty they choose, they can refine the reaction and intelligence of enemies, among other parameters. I must reiterate that this is still the same hardcore Sniper Elite experience that players have come to expect since at least 2012. It’s still hard, challenging, brutal, and immensely satisfying. This inclusion of accessibility gives even more range and inclusion to players, and it is tremendously exciting to see this incorporated for an audience that has every right to play Sniper Elite 5.
Sniper Elite 5 is near-perfect, but there are some grievances, particularly with the technical aspects of the game. Only time may tell how well the franchise will do if there happens to be another installment of the Sniper Elite series. Until then we’ll be sure to spend hours on some of these levels within Sniper Elite 5.
Editors’ Inserted Conclusion
Despite some gameplay and mechanical changes, Sniper Elite 5 remains true to its formula set by its predecessors. Some gameplay changes feel as if the developer has deliberately made the game more difficult for the casual player while making it more complex for fans of the franchise. The slight shift in combat tactics gives a sense of fresh air to the series by allowing the player to choose how they want to handle each level. Whether a new player or a seasoned veteran, Sniper Elite 5 offers any player a way to play. Based on Roberto’s article above, it appears that he enjoyed the game thoroughly almost to a point that he couldn’t put into words everything he enjoyed. Based on previous installments to the franchise and Roberto’s information above, we can speculate that Sniper Elite 5 is a worthy addition to the franchise and to fans of the series library.
A code for Sniper Elite 5 was provided for review on Xbox.
